Funding for encoding this finding aid was
provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the
Humanities.
Biographical Note
Tove Ott was born on June 25, 1896 in
Sønderholm, Jylland, Denmark to Trenton Barfod and Emily Foth. Her father was a
minister in a small town called Jølunde, which is located outside of
Copenhagen, and Tove had three older siblings: Volner, Kaj, and Louise Johanna.
In 1916, Tove married Mr. Peterson and a year later, had her daughter Gertrude.
Shortly after Gertrude's birth, Tove's husband died of heart failure. To
support herself, Tove worked at an establishment similar to Western Union,
sorting telegrams. At work, Tove became friends with a woman named Annie
(Kolten) Newman. Annie immigrated to the United States in 1921 and encouraged
Tove to do the same. Tove came two years later, leaving Gertrude with her
sister in Denmark. Tove's first job in America was as a babysitter, and in
April 1924, Annie informed her of a job opening at a boys' school in Palo Alto,
CA. Tove got the job and started work immediately. In May, she met her husband,
Minet William Ott, and was married in March of 1925. Two years later, Tove sent
for Gertrude. Gertrude was ten and a half at the time and learned English
quickly. Tove has not been actively involved in church in the United States but
does belong to the Danish Sisterhood in San Francisco, a Senior Citizens group
in Burlingame, and a civic group. She has returned to Denmark in 1936 and 1969
and still uses Danish when she writes to her relatives there. Tove is very
proud of her heritage.
Lineage
Full Name: Tove
Barfod Ott. Maiden Name: Tove Barfod. Father: Trenton Barfod. Mother: Emily
Foth. Brothers and Sisters: Volner Barfod, Kaj Barfod, Louise Johanna Barfod.
Spouse: Mr. Peterson, Minet William Ott. Children: Gertrude Barfod
Peterson.
Content Description
This interview was conducted with Tove
Ott, January 1981, in Burlingame, CA by Scott Lawley, a Pacific Lutheran
University student and Tove's grandson. It provides information about family
background, emigration, marriage, employment, community involvement, and Danish
heritage. The interview was conducted in English.
Use of the Collection
Restrictions on Access :
The oral history collection
is open to all users.
Restrictions on Use :
There are no
restrictions on use.
Administrative Information
Custodial History :
The Oral History collection
project was started during an experimental course on Scandinavian Women in the
Pacific Northwest. Students in the course were encouraged to interview women
and learn about their experiences as immigrants to the United States. The
project was continued and expanded with support from the president's office and
by grants from the L.J. Skaggs and Mary C. Skaggs Foundation, from the Joel E.
Ferris Foundation and the Norwegian Emigration Fund of the Royal Norwegian
Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The project was directed by Dr. Janet E.
Rasmussen. The collection was transferred to the Archives and Special
Collections Department.
Acquisition Information :
Related Materials :
To search and view Pacific
Lutheran University's digitized images, visit our
Digital Assets
Website
Processing Note :
The interview was conducted by
Scott Lawley using a cassette recorder. A research copy was also prepared from
the original. To further preserve the content of the interview, it is now being
transferred to compact disc. We deliberately did not transcribe the entire
interview because we want the researchers to listen to the interviewee's own
voice. The transcription index highlights important aspects of the interview
and the tape counter numbers noted on the Partial Interview Transcription are
meant as approximate finding guides and refer to the location of a subject on
the cassette/CD. The recording quality is good
The collection was
transcribed by Mary Sue Gee, Julie Peterson and Becky Husby.
Bibliography :
Rasmussen,
Janet Elaine. New Land New Lives:
Scandinavian Immigrants to the Pacific NorthwestTacoma, WashingtonUniversity of Washington
Press1993
Additional Reference Guides :
Detailed Description of the Collection
The partial interview transcription
highlights important aspects of the interview. Numbers may be used as guides to
important subjects. Two numbers separated by a slash indicate that the first
number is for cassette and the second for CD.
Cassette
48, side 1
015/08: PERSONAL
BACKGROUND
Born with the name Tove Foth
Barfod. She married a Mr. Peterson who died and later she married Mr. Ott. Tove
was born 25 June 1896 in Sønderholm, Jylland, Denmark, which is near
Aalborg.PARENTS: Mother's name was Emily and her father was Trenton.
Her father was a minister in a small town outside of Copenhagen. This town is
called Jølunde, which is not too far from Frederiksborg castle, Roskilde,
Denmark, and Landskrona, Sweden. She talks about her father's characteristics.
Her mother played the piano.
48, side 1
106/09: BROTHERS AND
SISTERS
Two boys and two girls in the
family. Her oldest brother is Volner, then Kaj, Louise Johanna and Tove, the
youngest.
48, side 1
125: MATERNAL
GRANDFATHER
He became the president of the
Cryolite mining company. She doesn't remember the rest of the family.
48, side 1
145: EMIGRATION
Traveled alone on a Danish ship. They left from
Copenhagen, Denmark to New York. Tove was married in 1916, had a child in 1917
and then Mr. Peterson died of heart failure.
48, side 1
190/10: CONDITIONS IN DENMARK
BEFORE LEAVING
Pretty good. Employed at a
place like Western Union in Copenhagen where she sorted telegrams. Her daughter
stayed with an uncle while she was working in Copenhagen. She had a friend
Annie (Kolten) Newman(?) who she worked with who came to America in 1921. She
encouraged Tove to emigrate.
48, side 1
241: ARRIVAL IN
AMERICA
Sponsors met her at the ship. They
were some relatives of her brother-in-law. Tove left in 1923 and left her
daughter with her sister. Annie, her friend, had traveled from New York to
Chicago, Illinois. Tove spent six weeks in New York. She had left Denmark on
June 14, 1923. The trip took eleven days.
48, side 1
270: FEELINGS ABOUT LEAVING
DENMARK
Knew she had to do something to
make a life for herself.
48, side 1
281/11: KEEPSAKES
Books and a few personal things.
48, side 1
295:
Sent for her daughter in 1927 to come to the US. Her
daughter was 10 1/2 at the time.
48, side 1
303: TRIP OVER
All kinds of entertainment. Met many fellow
passengers. No real problems. Got along well with her sponsor family.
48, side 1
326: FIRST JOB IN THE
U.S.
Babysitting from August to March.
Began to pick up English on the job.
48, side 1
340: ON TO CALIFORNIA IN APRIL
OF 1924
Her friend Annie wired her and
told her of a job opening at a boys school in Palo Alto, California. She
traveled there by train.
48, side 1
360/12: IMPRESSIONS OF
CALIFORNIA
Started work immediately.
Lived at the school. Made good friends.
48, side 1
370: CITIZENSHIP
Had to have two witnesses (see counter I-410).
48, side 1
377: LEARNING
ENGLISH
Picked it up pretty fast, kind of
tough at first. She tells a story about working New York and the language
problems she had and understanding what time to come back to work.
48, side 1
399: WHAT SHE LIKED MOST ABOUT
AMERICA
The beauty, took a few trips
around the country.
48, side 1
410: CITIZENSHIP
1926
Took classes. Had witnesses. Answered
questions (see counter I-370). This was in San Francisco, California.
48, side 1
419: MEETING
HUSBAND
Met him through Annie and Annie's
sister. She tells the story about these sisters' immigration. Met husband in
May of 1924 they were married in March of 1925. His name is Minet William Ott.
He was from Illinois. He was employed at Western Union.
48, side 2
028/13: CHILDREN
(Note: side 1 stops in the middle of the tape and
side 2 starts in the middle of the tape.)Gertrude came to America when she was
10 1/2. She didn't know any English but she learned very quickly and liked it
here. Gertrude worked in a store for awhile, then babysitting in a doctor's
home in San Francisco. She became interested in nursing and later graduated
from St. Luke's. Gertrude met her husband in Spokane. She was in the service
then.
48, side 2
150: GRANDCHILDREN
One is a student at Pacific Lutheran University.
48, side 2
160/01: VALUE
SYSTEM
U.S. vs. Denmark, no real
difference. Talks about discipline in the home. Minet worked at Western Union
until he retired in about 1963.
48, side 2
195: EMPLOYMENT
Worked some while married cleaning houses. The
Scandinavians had a good reputation as being good workers.
48, side 2
232:
Who had it easier men or women?: The men had trades and the
women didn't therefore it was harder for them to find work.
48, side 2
241: MEDICAL CARE IN DENMARK
vs. THE U.S.
In Denmark, you have to pay
so much a year, i.e. Medicare. Talks about the hospital care and getting their
tonsils out.
48, side 2
287/02: CHRISTMAS EVE
(Denmark and US) Started by going to
church and then came home to dinner. They had rice pudding complete with a
hidden almond. Decorating the Christmas tree. Church Christmas Day and the day
after. It was the same way for Easter. Tove feels that Christmas lasts until
after New Years.
48, side 2
321: CHURCH PLAYED A BIG
PART
Not active in the church today. She
could never get used to church in the US.
48, side 2
361/03: ORGANIZATIONS
Belongs to the
Danish Sisterhood in San Francisco. She joined because of the sick benefits in
1925. She also belongs to a Senior Citizens group in Burlingame, California.
She belongs to another civic group where she visits an older person every week
and they send out Christmas cards to those who are lonely.
48, side 2
417/04: TRIPS TO
DENMARK
Went in 1936 and 1969. She talks
about the conditions in 1936 when prices were going up and there was the fear
of war. There was no mail in or out during the war. Her father died during the
war. In 1969 she visited relatives and toured museums. She talks a little bit
about the fact that they were modernizing in Denmark. She keeps in touch with
relatives in Denmark by mail.
48, side 2
470/05: IMPORTANCE OF DANISH
HERITAGE
Important, proud of being born in
Denmark.
48, side 2
479:
Uses Danish when she writes to relatives in Denmark. She
still speaks Danish, she reads some Danish.
Subjects
This collection is indexed under
the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials
about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these
headings.
Personal Names :
Barfod, Trenton
Foth, Emily
Newman, Annie Kolten
Ott,
Minet William
Ott,
Tove--Interviews
(
creator)
Peterson, Gertrude Barfod
Family Names :
Barford
family
Foth
family
Ott
family
Peterson family
Corporate Names :
Danish Sisterhood of America (San Fransisco, Calif.)
Geographical Names :
Burlingame (Calif.)
Jølunde (Denmark)
Palo Alto
(Calif.)
Sønderholm (Jutland)
Subject Terms :
Christmas
Danes -- Ethnic identity
Danish-Americans--Interviews
Danish-Americans--Northwest,Pacific--Social life and
customs
